|
|
Imperial grower to represent Nebraska on United States Potato BoardNebraska Tim May of Imperial, Neb., was seated as a board member on the United States Potato Board at the organization's 37th annual meeting, March 10 to 13, in Denver, Colo. He was named to serve on the board by former Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer on Nov. 18, 2008, and formally begins his three-year term as of March 1, and ending on February 29, 2012. New board members serving on the USPB in their first three-year term can be reappointed to serve another consecutive three-year term. "I grew up on a farm in western Nebraska," May says, "Frenchman Valley Produce, Inc., was started in 1984. My wife, Tammy, was a school teacher until 1991 when she came into the business." May has been growing potatoes for 34 years. Norkotah, Ranger, Goldrush and Burbank potatoes are produced for fresh and processing. Wheat is also grown in rotation. May has served three terms on the Nebraska Potato Development Board. He attended the University of Wyoming in Laramie, Wyo., and coached high school wrestling for six years. As a high school wrestling coach, May had a runner-up finish his fourth year, and five top-10 finishes. Tim and Tammy have three sons--Taylor (age 21), Mathew (age 19), and Michael (age 13). They enjoy farming and participating in their family's athletic events. "My two oldest sons are in college," May says, "Taylor attends the University of Nebraska--Kearney and wrestles. He has been an All-American, and he has two years left. "My next son attends the University of Nebraska--Lincoln and plays football. My third son tries to measure up to his older brothers." Authorized under the 1971 Potato Research and Promotion Act, the USPB is composed of producers, importers and a public member appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture. Producer members are nominated at state and local producer meetings and by mail ballot. Each state is entitled to at least one producer member, and additional members are allotted on the basis of the volume of production. Importer members are nominated by importers, and the number of members is related to the volume of imports, up to a maximum of five importer members. The USPB administers an industry-funded national research and promotion program to increase U.S. exports and domestic potato consumption. USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service oversees the operations of the USPB. More information about the research and promotion programs is available at www.ams.usda.gov/FVPromotion.
|
|
